Brea Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 Well, after spending more than 2 hours scrubbing down the (wooden) hen house which was absolutely riddled with red mite, I have finally had enough and ordered an Eglu. I have spent the past six months constantly cleaning that house out - every day cleaning it, cleaning the run, the coop etc and yet, the house was full of the horrible things (and I kept getting covered in them which is horrible!!). They seem to have just multiplied within a few days. I think it must have been due to the very warm/humid weather we've had here in London which has allowed them to breed to such an extent. One of my hens refused to go to bed last night and so had to put them both in the carrier and have them sleep in the house, which they were very happy about. I then treated them with red mite powder and spent this morning scrubbing the thing down, but I've had enough now. They were literally coming out of the woodwork and I still haven't got all of them - it was an impossible task. So we are very much looking forward to finally getting our Eglu! Wanted one for so many years and I'm hoping that it's going to save me a lot of time and hassle plus be better for our two lovely ladies! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moochoo Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 Good for you! Red mite are little blighters and even though you can still get red mite in an eglu they're so much easier to irradicate. I hope you don't have long to wait and you can start enjoying chicken keeping again rather than it being a chore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppy ben grace Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 Yay! Good for you. I had the same problem with my wooden house. Even in the winter i was finding the little blighters, so in feb this year i ordered a cube and since then have had no problems. You will love the eglu, they are fab! What colour did you go for? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowy Posted September 6, 2011 Share Posted September 6, 2011 I hope it will be much easier for you. I've had them in my cube and been blitzing it every so often. Was dreading coming back from holiday last week as it hadn't been done for 2 weeks, but I hardly found any, just a couple under the roosting bars. Was very impressed. Can't say the same for the branch perches in the WIR - the blighters like to hide in those Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brea Posted September 7, 2011 Author Share Posted September 7, 2011 Hi Everyone - I went for the purple - can't wait for it to arrive, hope it doesn't take six weeks though! I did consider going for the Cube, but as I only have two hens I thought it would be too large for them. The hens are sleeping in their large plastic carrier in the dining room, which they seem to enjoy! No doubt because they aren't being bitten all night long. I was so shocked at how many were in there yesterday - I must have killed millions. I checked the coop this morning, and there were a few on the door, which I got rid of, but there didn't appear to be any on the inside so I'm hoping I got at least 3/4 of them. I will clean it again on Sunday and treat the girls again with red mite powder. Those mites were just coming out of all the tiny gaps between the panels, the roof....everywhere. Horrible. Even though I showered instantly after I'd finished, I am still finding the odd one crawling around on me! YUK!!! I hope they don't get onto my other animals (dog and cats) - my husband has already found three crawling around on his laptop screen!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppy ben grace Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 Thats horrible, i cant believe how bad they are, your poor hens! Oh well hopefully they wont have to wait too long for the new eglu. is a great colour choice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brea Posted September 7, 2011 Author Share Posted September 7, 2011 I know - poor things. I just can't understand it as I am constantly cleaning it! I can only think they are coming from the back of the coop which I can't get to, because it's hard against the fence. The eglu will be in a different location so that won't be an issue. My eglu arrives next week!! So excited! Only wanted one for about seven years!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 Sorry to hear that. If you've brought them indoors then you'll need to spray all your furnishings with a permethrin-based spray, but you will have to keep the cats out of the way when you do that as its' toxic to them. Try showering and washing your hair with a dog flea shampoo which also contains permethrin - that ought to kill them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brea Posted September 8, 2011 Author Share Posted September 8, 2011 Thanks - they were in a plastic carrier in a room where there aren't any furnishings or carpet but I did wash all the sofa coverings, clothes, the dog, steam cleaned the floors etc. Haven't had any sign of mites today and Daisy actually went into the coop last night without any problems so fingers crossed. My eglu arrives next Wednesday so only a small wait - yay! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
